All of this is just a distraction from the real issue here, which is in approximately one month we are about to begin the monumentally exhausting and frustrating task (so I hear) of transitioning Eirinn from a crib into a bed.A real, live, big girl bed with no sides to act as a team to form a Child Containment Unit.We’ll install one of those removable bed rail systems to ensure she doesn’t fall out, but that won’t keep her from voluntarily getting out of bed over and over again.A suggestion of a baby gate across the bedroom door has been mentally noted.

Stay tuned for some very erratic and irrational posts in the near future.

2. Potty training.Yes, our plan was to train over the Christmas holidays while we were both home for an extended period of time and able to dedicate our lives to alternately asking if she had to go pee pee and cleaning up disgraced and violated carpets.However, Eirinn wasn’t, and isn’t, ready.I think she’s fairly close (has used the potty successfully several times, tells us when she’s dirtied her diaper, shows interest in the potty), but just not quite there yet.

Eirinn is a head-strong girl, set in her ways, tied to her routines, unwilling to change.When we finally get the courage to start the hard core, potty training boot camp, I anticipate we’ll be met with resistance, even if she is ready in every other way.I don’t plan on forcing this onto her, I don’t want to traumatize the poor thing, but on the other hand, I was still kind of hoping she’d be trained by the time we have a second bum to diaper.

3. Speaking of which, we have the small issue of a second mouth to feed in the coming months.4 months and 19 days until expected arrival, to be exact.I am in no way nervous of either the birth or the infant him or herself (however foolish this may be – it even sounds ridiculous as I type it).I’ve been through both before, without the aid of drugs, I might add, and we both made it out a little exhausted, but fine.I have not, however, experienced caring for an infant with a screaming, needy toddler in the same picture.This very thought makes my palms sweaty and increases my blood pressure to an unhealthy level.

I may have made it out of the infant stage fine, but certainly not gracefully.It was rough while it was happening, that’s for sure, with a colicky, fussy baby. I have to now imagine life, if we’re going the worst-case-scenario route, with a colicky, fussy baby and a busy, grumpy toddler.All I can wish is that this next one is a happier infant and that Eirinn takes to sharing her everything better than I am expecting her to.Which is not…very…well.

Coming up – Things coming up that I’m excited about. Just so you don’t think I’m all gloom and doom.I wish I could write about these today, but my hands are too sweaty to keep typing and I think I’m going to go breathe into a bag for a while.

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2 thoughts on “In through the nose, out through the mouth”

I have a three year old and a 9 month old, it’s been interesting, but we’re all just fine 🙂

My son was not toilet trained when the baby was born but when the baby was four months old he decided he was a big boy and he started using the toilet. I never bought a potty, just a little seat to fit over the normal toilet. I think toddlers just do it when they’re ready. I read a lot about toilet training and most things said that even if a toddler is “completely” trained, when a new baby arrives they change they’re minds and refuse again for a while.

I think the whole bed thing will work out too. My son first slept in his big boy bed (twin size) on his 2nd birthday and he has been in it ever since. We started with letting him take naps on it so he could get used to the whole idea. I think he liked it so much because it was a lot more comfortable than his crib, not to mention more room to roll around.